Scoring 79 or above on the Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic exam is not merely about having great English abilities. Due to the nature of the PTE exam being wholly computer-based, one must have a good grasp of the AI marking process to learn the best PTE reading tips and tricks. For a significant number of test takers, the reading component is the last hurdle between them and acquiring their permanent residence or college acceptance.
To achieve an excellent score like 79+ (the equivalent of IELTS band 8.0), it is crucial to have an effective strategy in place. This resource provides you with a concise summary of the most valuable tactics and PTE reading strategies 79+ suggested by professional tutors to ace the PTE Reading component by using the AI system.
- “The Hidden Rule”: Cross-Scoring
Perhaps the most important hidden feature of PTE Academic’s Reading tips is the fact that you can earn reading points by doing more than just reading. The test follows a cross-scoring pattern, where the scores in different sections are related to each other. If you want to score a 79 or more in reading, you should do well on these activities:
- Read aloud (Speaking module): This one task holds the key to your reading score. As you are reading aloud, the AI also reads your text in parallel with you. If you pause too often, mispronounce anything, or make mistakes while reading, your reading score will be reduced right there and then.
- Summary of Written Text (Writing Section): You need to compress a lengthy text into one sentence. If done effectively, this task will earn you marks in both Writing and Reading sections.
- Identifying Correct Summary (Listening Section): Here, you have to listen to an audio recording and select the most accurate written summary from the choices. The task assesses how accurately you have understood what you have listened to, thus awarding you marks in the Reading section.
Key Point: Your reading score cannot be above 79 if your “Read Aloud” task in the speaking section is not satisfactory.
- Solving “Re-order Paragraphs”
In this activity, you will be provided with several sentences that are jumbled up and confusing. Your job is to rearrange them accordingly. It sounds tough, and many students struggle with it. However, you should know that the AI will use adjacent pairs to evaluate your answers. That means that you do not have to arrange all the sentences in their proper places to score points. In fact, you get 1 point for every two sentences put in their proper places next to each other.
Apply the Noun-to-Pronoun Rule
Find connections between names/nouns and pronouns.
- Example: Sentence A states, “The local government constructed a new park in 2022.” Sentence B states, “It has a big running track.”
- Why? The name/noun (“a new park”) must always precede the pronoun (“it”). You get your 100% guaranteed connection: A to B.
Check for Articles (A/An vs. The)
The writer tends to use the indefinite article like “a” or “an” when introducing something. On the other hand, the definite article “the” is used in mentioning the same thing later on. Dates and years can help establish the right sequence of sentences. Time expressions such as First, Then, Afterward, and Finally provide an additional hint on how to do this.
- Fill in the Blanks: Reading & Writing
It is the highest-weight question type in the whole Reading part. To succeed, you must combine contextual vocabulary with targeted PTE reading fill in the blanks techniques.
The Strategy: Collocations Are Your Key to Success
The AI algorithm is based on the vocabulary collocations, which means words often used together in English. For example, we say “take a test” or “make a mistake” but never say “do a test” or “build a mistake.” In order to score above 79 in exam, first try to familiarize yourself with typical collocations through academic readings. If you find some answer choice sounds like a familiar collocation, the chances are high you got the right answer.
Use Grammar Clues
It might help you reduce the number of options if you consider other words around the blank:
- Prepositions Are Your Best Friend: Check what follows the blank in terms of preposition. So if the word is “on,” your options will be depend, rely, focus, and insist, while if it’s “to,” belong and lead will become more probable answers.
- Maintain Verb Tenses: Read the preceding and following sentences to see if the entire paragraph is relating an event that took place in the past. Look for a verb in the past form unless you see a time expression shifting the focus to the present.
- Matching the Correct Words in a Reading Task (Drag & Drop)
In this particular type of task, you will be given text with several blanks in it. Then, there will be a set of words in a at the bottom of the screen. Your goal is to drag and match the correct word to each blank in the text provided. However, not all the words in the pool will fit.
The best way to pass this task is to understand that your focus should be on parts of speech. Rather than trying to guess which words would make sense in the blank space, you could identify which part of speech is expected:
| When the blank is found… | You will need: | Example |
| After articles such as ‘a’, ‘an’ or ‘the’ | A Noun (person, place or thing) | The [growth] of the company… |
| Before a noun | An Adjective (word for description) | A [drastic] change in climate… |
| After a verb/ action word | An Adverb (often ends with “-ly”) | The population [rapidly] increased… |
As soon as you categorize the words into nouns, verbs or adjectives, about 70-80% of them can be eliminated instantly.
- Multiple Choice, Multiple Answers
For this type of question, you need to identify multiple answers from among some options. Beware! This question comes with negative marking, making it one of the most notorious PTE reading common traps.
- If your answer is right, then you are awarded +1 mark for each correct answer.
- If you answer incorrectly, then you lose one mark for each wrong answer.
- The minimum marks you will be awarded per question is 0 marks, which means your score can never be less than 0).
Safe Approach
Since the incorrect choice will take back any credit earned through a correct choice, always go for the answers you are absolutely certain about. Suppose that you have identified one answer but are in doubt whether a particular answer is correct or not. Then don’t mark it because you risk getting no marks at all by doing so.
- Time Management
In the PTE Reading test, there is a single timer so if you spend too much time on any particular text, you will not have enough time to answer other questions. The inability to answer fill in the blanks questions because of a lack of time, results in a fail of test and get a result lower than 79.
Manage your strict time budget to ensure you stay on top of everything:
- Fill in the Blanks (Reading & Writing): 2 minutes max per text.
- Re-order Paragraphs: 2 minutes max per puzzle.
- Fill in the Blanks (Reading): 1.5 minutes max per text.
- Multiple Choice (Multiple Answers): 1.5 to 2 minutes max total.
- Multiple Choice (Single Answer): 1 minute max total.
TIP: On multiple choice questions, don’t waste your time on them if you’re unable to figure out the answer for more than a minute; click “Next” instead.
- Think Like the AI Grading System
The Pearson AI grader does not comprehend or derive enjoyment from any story in the manner that a human would. Instead, it grades through identifying patterns within text structure, grammar formations, and vocabulary. In order to better align yourself to its grading system, adjust your reading process:
- Scan: Do not read the entire passage word-for-word. Instead, read the question carefully, find out what the main keywords are, and quickly scan the text for the main keywords.
- Context Clues: You may find certain words that are difficult. Rather than fearing unfamiliar words, read the sentence immediately to determine if it is positive, negative, an action, or an object.
- Test Software: Make sure to practice your reading skills using software that mimics the real test environment of PTE.
- Useful Word Pairs to Remember
In order to achieve at least a grade of 79+, students have to memorize academic collocations. They are specific sets of words used together both in textbooks and essays. The AI searches for such particular collocation patterns.
Here is a table of the most frequent word pairs used in the exam:
| Word | Paired with | Example Sentence |
| Conduct | ..research/..a study | “The university will conduct research on health.” |
| Play a | …role / …part | “Diet plays a vital role in keeping you healthy.”
|
| Highly | …likely / …effective | “The new rules are highly effective at saving energy.”
|
| Provide | …insights / …support | “The graph provides useful insights into the market.”
|
| Deeply | …rooted / …concerned |
Deeply …rooted / …concerned “ |
When the words above are separated by a gap, you will be able to find out the second part of each collocation instantly.
- Actual Example Walkthrough: Rearranging a Paragraph
Let us now try out the rules of rearrangement using an actual set of sentences. Suppose you get these four sentences arranged randomly:
- Sentence A: This sudden increase in the population led to a serious lack of housing.
- Sentence B: At the beginning of the 20th century, a new factory was set up in a small town.
- Sentence C: Hundreds of families moved there due to the availability of work.
- Sentence D: This factory provided inexpensive cars to the local people.
We shall now rearrange these sentences properly:
Step 1: Identify the first sentence. Sentence B is independent because it provides a time period, and it introduces a subject (“new factory”) that is not dependent on any other previous sentence. (Sentence B: first sentence)
Step 2: Identify the next logical link. Sentence B refers to a “new factory.” Sentence D starts with the subject “factory” itself.
Step 3: Sentence D refers to the “cars” made at the factory, which results in creating employment opportunities. Sentence C starts with “As a result of these jobs…”
Step 4: Link the final piece: Sentence C ends by stating that “families moved to the area.” The movement of families results in a population increase. Sentence A begins with the statement that “This sudden population growth…” This closes the loop.
The correct sequence is: B, D, C and A.
- The 4-Week Plan You Must Follow:
This week you must adhere to a strict daily schedule. Below is a simple 4-week plan you can follow from now on:
Week 1: “Read Aloud” Technique
- Do 15 Read Aloud exercises every day and make sure your speech sounds smooth.
- Solve a minimum of 5 rearranging paragraph questions each day in order to improve your skills.
Week 2: Vocabulary and Grammar
- Practice 10 fill in the blanks exercises every day.
- Maintain a small notebook and note down all the mistakes you made with collocations. Then check this list before starting every practice session.
Week 3: Force Yourself to Work Within Set Time Frames
- Begin timing yourself while working next to your laptop monitor.
- Challenge yourself to work on only two minutes on each fill-in-the-blank text. If you are not able to complete the exercise within the time, make a random choice and proceed.
Week 4: Take Full-Length Exams
- Do 2 mock exams from the Reading section under real test conditions.
- Check if you make errors because of lack of time or poor grammar knowledge.
Getting a 79 or more score in PTE reading requires a proper strategy rather than depending on luck. In order to succeed you have to understand how to apply the cross-scoring technique, learn about academic collocations, and use grammar rules to avoid wrong choices in answering the questions.
Tiju’s Academy is a leading training institution, focusing on providing coaching for English proficiency tests such like OET, IELTS, and PTE Academic. We have a personalized approach in offering coaching services, which supports individualized needs and the desired scores. Our professional instructors will provide adequate resources and materials and will use advanced practice portals that simulate actual test environments. We support you to become proficient with the specific techniques and grammar rules that lead to high marks.
